The Dragon's Companion
by The Author Challenger Muse
Summary: S3, It's quite difficult to make friends with a dragon. Even more difficult to make friends with one like Sherlock. He stared at him, mind whirling. "You're a bloody dragon! When were you planning on telling me!" "It never came up until now" "Never came -!" He started incredulously, "Sherlock-" Eventually Johnlock
1. Chapter 1

**The Dragon's Companion**

Disclaimer:

I do not own BBC Sherlock.

Note:

Basically there are people who are creatures. They can look human but can make certain animal features of theirs appear/disappear at will to blend in with ordinary humans. There's prejudice between humans and creatures so they generally hide what they are.

Summary:

S3, It's quite difficult to make friends with a dragon. Even more difficult to make friends with one like Sherlock. John refuses to help Sherlock but luckily he still has someone he can lean on. Not that he needs it. Eventually Johnlock

* * *

**Chapter 1**

Sherlock was happy to finally be back in London. Finally home after two long years. The first thing he wanted to do was see John but he'd taken one look at Meliora and determined he needed to get her settled in first. Together they sneaked into 221 B Baker Street which Sherlock was relieved to note wasn't covered in a layer of dust. He nudged the wolf into his room where she kicked off her shoes and collapsed on his bed. He crouched down beside her so her sleepy eyes could meet his without moving. "I'm going to get John," he explained, his voice low due to the obvious headache she had.

Her hand reached out and grasped his suit. "Safe?" She murmured, worried.

The dragon realized long ago he'd gone soft. The process had started with John and continued with this young wolf he'd met. Unlike him though, she'd always been running. He knew she'd never truly experienced feeling any real level of safety until he had earned her trust and loyalty. The woman had not slept or relaxed when Mycroft had brought them back as she didn't trust anyone other than him and considering her overprotective behavior of him Sherlock had to wonder if she had ever been taken care of by anyone. "It's safe here," he reassured her. "You can rest now."

"John protect you?"

He couldn't stop the small smile from forming. If it had been anyone else he would've snapped at them that he didn't need protecting. But she needed to know he was protected because she was unaware of the dangers of her new environment. He could understand that. It was more than enough that she seemed to trust John to protect him. Perhaps telling her about John during their time on the run had went a long way to helping her trust John. "John will protect me." He leaned forward so his forehead touched hers for a moment.

Meliora closed her eyes, finally allowing herself to relax.

When Sherlock pulled away, she was asleep.

* * *

Meliora jumped out of bed at the sound of a scream coming from downstairs, automatically moving quickly but quietly out of Sherlock's room and to the door. She cracked it open. Her nose picked up a scent that made her tense even more. Why had Sherlock been bleeding?

As things were settled between Mrs Hudson and Sherlock, the dragon made his way up the stairs and was unsurprised when the wolf was standing there, growling lowly and threateningly.

Her wolf ears were pinned back in anger. How dare someone hurt one of her pack! How dare they! "Who?"

Sherlock went over and sat down in his chair. At least, being a creature, he healed faster. But despite having mostly healed Meliora still knew he'd been hurt. Unfortunately the woman had a lot of practice with sniffing out his injuries. "It's fine," he told her dismissively. Obviously he'd miscalculated on how best to approach John. The man was not happy with him. He couldn't tell Meliora it'd been John. The woman wouldn't think anything of hunting him down and possibly killing him. She was fiercely protective and also rather wound up from the lack of sleep. Not that this was unusual for wolves but wolves tended to only accept other wolves into their pack. It was one of the reasons he'd been amazed when she'd declared that they were a pack. Not an easy feat for someone not a wolf. For a dragon to be part of one was unheard of.

Her emerald eyes looked him over, her stance still stiff but her anger faded. "You took care of it?"

"It won't happen again," he replied because it wouldn't. The fact was he had automatically lowered his defenses around John and hadn't wanted to hurt the man. John was only human. If the man tried to attack him again he would stop him before it became a fight and he accidentally injured him.

She relaxed though she was still growling slightly.

"You should go back to sleep."

The black-haired wolf tilted her head, growl disappearing completely.

He knew what she wanted and easily gave it. At this point he had to admit it would probably feel odd not to.

* * *

If Sherlock had any doubt about his brother being in the building, which he didn't, it would've became obvious when his wolf companion began staring at the door with narrowed eyes. It was an improvement from the growling and usual readiness she took to attack at any given moment. He really had gone soft. Caring may not be an advantage but it certainly had benefits.

* * *

Mary storming into the room would have been a bad idea had she not been shouting about something happening to John.

Sherlock knew it was only because of this that the black-haired woman hadn't tried to intimidate Mary, opting to simply glare to ensure Mary knew she was unwelcome. Reading the skip code, he knew he would have to act quickly. He mumbled the destination under his breath, knowing Meliora would hear it and his request to save John.

She took off running while Sherlock and Mary stood in the middle of the road. It went unsaid that Mary didn't know what Sherlock was and even if she did she wouldn't agree to stay behind. So while Sherlock searched for another mode of transportation she ran, glad that she had an eidetic memory and had glanced at all those city maps earlier while Sherlock was trying to figure out how a man had disappeared off the subway. Otherwise finding her way would be impossible.

* * *

They arrived at about the same time. Sherlock had the speed advantage with the motorcycle but Meliora hadn't needed to stay on streets and such. She could jump a wall when she needed to in order to cut time on her journey. She was slightly panting and tired so when she saw the dragon arrive much closer to the destination, she allowed herself to stop for a moment. Perhaps she should've forgone stealth for this but it'd simply been habit. Her eyes scanned the crowd of people around the bonfire. Something wasn't right. She moved closer but did her best to stay out of sight. Her eyes caught a guy with a video camera casually pointed in Sherlock's direction as the dragon pulled, who she assumed was John, out of the fire. Was that man recording or was it simply shock at the events transpiring that kept him from completely lowering it?

* * *

Meliora didn't get back to the flat until the next morning. She was in a bad mood, only briefly glaring at the old people on the couch for a moment before she casually collapsed sideways in what she could only guess was John's chair. Normally she wouldn't turn her back on anyone but Sherlock was very relaxed and she really needed a nap.

"Is this the woman Mycroft told us about?" Mrs Holmes questioned her son since it was clear the woman had fallen asleep. "The one who helped you while you were away?"

"Yes, this is Meliora. She's claimed me as part of her pack." At his parent's inquisitive gazes, he added, "She was a lone wolf. I'm all she has."

His mother's gaze turned soft, "Well she's perfectly welcomed into our family. She's clearly proven herself to you. That's more than enough for us."

Sherlock snorted. "She won't trust you just because you're my parents; she barely tolerates Mycroft's presence."

"I think her reaction has more to do with you than him. I heard she never slept around him but she doesn't seem to mind sleeping with us here," she pointed out with a smile.

He glanced over at the sleeping wolf. That was most likely true. Hadn't Meliora shown an in-ordinary amount of trust in John? She hadn't even met the man but she'd heard about him. The sound of footsteps on the stairs alerted him to the fact John was here.

"Oh, you have clients. I'll just come back later," John was about to turn around to leave.

"No no no. Stay," Sherlock insisted as he ushered his parents out the door rather quickly. His attempt to close the door failed, stopped by his mother's foot.

"Do try and visit us while we're here Sherlock. We don't see you very often. You can bring her with you."

"I doubt she'd want to," Sherlock grumbled.

"Promise me you'll at least try?"

He begrudgingly promised and was pleased that after a kiss to the forehead his mother allowed him to close the door completely. But as he spun around to face John he realized he had a new problem.

Meliora had woken up. And she was less than pleased to see John.

**Well what do you think so far? Do you like Meliora?**


	2. Chapter 2

**The Dragon's Companion**

Disclaimer:

I do not own BBC Sherlock.

Note:

Basically there are people who are creatures. They can look human but can make certain animal features of theirs appear/disappear at will to blend in with ordinary humans. There's prejudice between humans and creatures so they generally hide what they are.

* * *

**Chapter 2**

Her growl grew louder, fangs flashing and eyes glowing slightly with anger.

Sherlock could see her nails growing into claws as John stood there, petrified. "Meliora," he called her.

Green eyes snapped toward him, "You told me you took care of it!"

"I told you it wouldn't happen again and it won't," he reminded her.

John took a step back, "Sher-" He froze as Sherlock motioned for him not to move.

"Don't fucking talk to him!" She snarled. "You hurt him! I know you hurt him!" The wolf took two steps forward, "He may have tried to wash it off but I could still smell you on him! I could smell the blood and the pain!"

Sherlock took slow steps toward her, "Mel-"

"He smells like smoke." She looked at Sherlock. "Why does he smell like-?" A horrified expression came over her. "_This_ is **_John_**?!" And the worst of it was as she glanced back at her pack-mate she knew how Sherlock felt about the man so she knew the dragon wouldn't allow her to kill the human. The black-haired wolf completely ignored John as she went up to the dragon. "Let's leave London. We don't have to stay here," she almost begged. "We were doing fine before-"

"Running and fighting are not the solutions to every problem." He felt uneasy at the look of betrayal on her face. In a softer tone he stated, "I'm not rejecting you."

John was watching them, surprised by Sherlock's caring expression and shocked when he saw the man lean his head against the humanoid creature.

"I'm not rejecting the pack," he whispered so John couldn't hear. "John is my pack-mate too."

"But-"

"Sometimes pack-mates physically lash out when they're upset," he reminded her.

She pouted, not able to deny that. "Fine," she said begrudgingly. "But there's no way I'm letting him be your Alpha."

Sherlock offered her a small smile. "Isn't that your position?"

The wolf couldn't help but smile back.

John felt something twist in his stomach at that smile being directed at her. It stung to see that smile disappear as Sherlock glanced up at him after the creature spun around to stand beside the consulting detective.

"You're off the hook for now," she barked while pointing at him, "but you hurt Sherlock like that again and I'll make your life a living hell." Meliora walked over to him and gave a brief snarl at his face before walking over to the couch and jumping at an angle so she landed on her back.

The only human in the room saw her close her eyes but he very much doubted she was going to sleep. "What the bloody hell was that all about?" He whispered, not wanting to disturb her, "I thought she was going to attack me."

Sherlock walked over to lazily sit in his chair. "Most likely she would have almost killed you if you had been anyone else."

"And you would've let her?!" He whispered harshly.

His blue eyes glanced over at him, expression calm and almost indifferent. He almost pointed out how whispering was pointless because Meliora could hear everything perfectly fine but decided against it. It would only make John uncomfortable. Instead he simply pinned the doctor with his gaze. Not in any effort to intimidate him but to make him understand. "She's accustomed to a highly dangerous environment. She'll calm down eventually."

John scoffed, "Of course. Where else would you meet anyone? Did you two have fun while you were pretending to be dead?"

Sherlock frowned slightly, "That was hardly about having fun."

"Wasn't it?"

The dragon was hurt but refused to show it. "I told you I had no choice-"

"Bullocks Sherlock! You had a choice; you just didn't care enough to consider anyone else!"

Meliora opened her eyes. She could almost taste the blood from the invisible wound this lowly human had inflicted. "Leave," she sternly commanded.

The human turned around, eyes wide as if he'd forgotten about her presence. Without another word, he made his way out the door and slammed it closed behind him.

"Meli-"

"Does he always treat you like that?" She asked with a frown as she sat up to face Sherlock.

"I told you he's upset."

The wolf snorted, "Upset? What does he have to be upset about? You're the one who-" She stopped at the look he shot her. Right. They weren't going to talk about that then. She sighed, "I thought you said he wasn't an idiot. Surely he already -"

"He doesn't and he won't." His tone warned his companion how serious he was as his expression hardened.

"But if he-"

"Would you tell?"

She raised a brow at him. "I've told you."

"I was there." He pointed out.

Her expression dropped, "Not for all of it Sherlock."

His expression softened. "I think we know I'm different from the general population Meliora."

She gave him a wry smile, "I didn't know that particular characteristic at the time." She was, of course, referring to how despite how difficult it was to get close to a dragon and no matter how unfeeling they could appear to be, the species cared on a much deeper level than most. You could say that a dragon was a life-long friend unless deeply betrayed. They felt betrayal on a level that pretty much guaranteed depression and suicidal tendencies. Some dragons went mad from being betrayed. But at the same time, once they had a companion, they truly accepted who that person was and were compassionate, caring and understanding although not all dragons necessarily showed this. Which was why the trait was so unknown.

Neither of them spoke for a moment.

"Can we go to bed now?"

Sherlock sighed in resignation.

"Just for a couple hours. I know you've got that case you're in the middle of."

They started walking to Sherlock's bedroom.

"So where did you disappear to last night?" The consulting detective asked.

"Well, while you were saving John I saw this..."

John didn't hear the rest as they'd traveled too far from the door. What was Sherlock hiding now? Well, besides the fact that he was closer to that creature than he thought Sherlock was capable of being with anyone. Why would they sleep together unless they were _sleeping_ together? He didn't notice the frown on his own face as he quietly made his way down the stairs.

* * *

Meliora knew that hurting John by faking his death had inflicted a wound on Sherlock as much as a betrayal would and although it thankfully hadn't caused suicidal tendencies there was still the depression. Sherlock hid it well but she knew it was there. And with John being such an ass to him, she knew that hole inside of him was growing. She clung to his dress shirt with one hand while rubbing her forehead against his chest. 'I'm here Sherlock,' she tried to silently express to him. 'I promise I won't let you drown.'

He rested his chin against the top of her head and wrapped an arm around her. They didn't talk about it but he knew she was aware of his condition and while he was unlikely to ever say it, he was thankful to have her here with him.


	3. Chapter 3

**The Dragon's Companion**

Disclaimer:

I do not own BBC Sherlock.

Note:

Basically there are people who are creatures. They can look human but can make certain animal features of theirs appear/disappear at will to blend in with ordinary humans. There's prejudice between humans and creatures so they generally hide what they are.

**otala:** True. She doesn't know his side of the story. What she knows is what Sherlock's told her about John and how much Sherlock cares about him. What she wrongfully assumes is that the two of them had already talked about what happened and that Sherlock explained why he did what he did and what he'd been doing since John last saw him. Her reaction is a combination of as Sherlock said 'being accustomed to a highly dangerous environment'; the fact she was currently being overprotective due to a high level of stress, lack of sleep and Sherlock being the only person she's attached to at the moment and could break the moment John says something that cuts deep enough. Of course, while she may not like John what matters more to her is whether or not Sherlock is happy.**  
**

* * *

**Chapter 3  
**

After Sherlock had successfully stopped the bomb and got John to forgive him it seemed that everyone had turned up at the flat. Lestrade, John, Mary, Molly and her fiance and of course, Meliora. Making John think he'd be unable to stop a bomb had been Meliora's idea really. Although, to tell the truth, if it came down to clipping wires the bomb would've most certainly gone off. So it hadn't really been a lie. Anyone could flip a switch after all. Still, he'd gone with the idea for multiple reasons. Meliora agreeing to try to be nicer to John if he scared John being one of them. And he did want John to forgive him. He'd been so relieved to hear it that he'd become hysterical at the expression on the man's face for truly believing they were about to die. The metaphorical hole he felt became just a bit smaller knowing John was no longer angry at him. And for once he didn't complain about all the people in the flat.

John was surprised to see Meliora get on with Lestrade and Molly and despite seeming uncomfortable around Mary, was even nice to her. He watched as the creature avoided interacting with Molly's boyfriend though she did whisper things to Sherlock while staring at the man in amusement. He was surprised to see Sherlock smiling and chuckling to whatever Meliora was whispering. It hurt to see how little Sherlock had missed him. How replaceable he was. And why wouldn't he be replaced? Surely someone like Meliora, a non-human, was vastly more interesting than him? He was surprised the creature hadn't went with Sherlock after the bomb. Surely Sherlock would eventually stop letting him come around since the humanoid creature didn't like him. Even now, when Sherlock wasn't looking, she'd occasionally shoot him a glare. At least he hadn't received any verbal threats.

* * *

John was testing Meliora's patience. The human was clearly an idiot. And he was going to pay for this. No matter what Sherlock said she was going to punish that moron. One way or another. Public humiliation at his own wedding sounded good, if she could plan it without Sherlock finding out and stopping her. She'd prefer to maim as that would surely drive her point home but the dragon would be hurt if she did that. As he was her pack she wouldn't. But dammit she'd warned the idiot what would happen if he hurt Sherlock again and being the oblivious human that he was, John didn't seem to even realize what he'd done when he asked Sherlock to be his best man. To stand there, right up front to witness his marriage to Mary. In addition to that, Meliora had to be a _bridesmaid_. Because there was no way she was allowing her pack-mate to suffer through this by himself. She just prayed the dresses wouldn't be pink. If they were, well, John would suffer that much more. As she opened the door to the room she shared with Sherlock she locked down her anger and fury. It broke her heart to see the dragon lying there because it was such a common sight now since Sherlock had agreed to be best man. He even refused to take a case on the pretense of helping out with the wedding. Not that it was a lie because despite her opinion on the matter Sherlock was helping John and Mary with the wedding. Or at least was present for a lot of it. She was kneeling beside the bed, chin resting on the edge. "Dray," she called softly. It was the nickname she'd given him upon discovering his dragon status although she saved it for moments when she needed to reach the man.

His eyes fluttered open.

"I brought food," she continued in her soft tone, slowly moving the plate of take-away Chinese food into his line of vision.

There was no sign that he even heard her.

Green eyes narrowed. "Eat," she demanded with a growl.

His eyes moved to the food.

"Eat! Now!" She repeated more fiercely.

Sherlock slowly sat up and took the plate and fork when it was handed to him. He didn't taste the food. It didn't matter. Nothing did. Except John's happiness and the fact he wasn't it.

Meliora watched him, occasionally snapping at him when it looked like he was going to stop eating. She made sure he finished most of it before she hummed in satisfaction that he'd be good for the week. Luckily dragons didn't need to eat very often. Trying to force him to eat every day would've indeed been a great challenge. And thank god he wasn't human. Three times a day would've driven her to the point of insanity.

* * *

John walked up the stairs, surprised to hear a violin playing. He only now realized he hadn't heard it since before Sherlock faked his death. When he opened the door, he was even more shocked to find it wasn't Sherlock playing though it was most certainly the man's violin.

The wolf murmured the last of the lyrics of the music she played **(AN:** _Sleepsong by Bastille_**) **so only Sherlock could hear them.

_Oh you go to sleep on your own,_  
_ And you wake each day with your thoughts_  
_ And it scares you being alone,_  
_ It's a last resort..._

"You're not alone Dray," she murmured, not wanting John to hear.

He glanced up from his spot on the couch, the hint of a smile on his lips despite the sadness in his eyes.

She watched his walls go up before he looked at John.

"John," he said as a way of greeting.

John was staring at the violin. "You let her touch your violin." Not only touch it but actually use it.

Meliora rolled her eyes. She gently placed the instrument beside Sherlock's chair before sitting down. "Only because I know the proper way to make strings sing," she said with the hint of a smirk. "Not that I'm limited to just using my fingers. I also have an oral talent. Not that knowing how to blow something really required much talent." She almost laughed at the expression on the human's face.

Sherlock raised a brow at her while John's jaw tensed slightly.

Did she seriously just imply..?

"Wouldn't you agree Sherlock?" She looked at him with a smile.

"You do have an unusual talent," he admitted. He'd never met someone who could instinctively play almost anything they picked up without any lessons.

The human blinked, hearing the man complimenting her. His hands tightened into fists before he realized he was upset. Then he relaxed. Why was he upset? He should be happy Sherlock found someone. Yet, even thinking about it seemed to turn his stomach.

The wolf chuckled. Oh dense and oblivious John. The man couldn't even admit to himself how he truly felt for Sherlock. Quite sad considering Mary could see how Sherlock felt. Then again, anyone with eyes could see what her pack-mate felt for John. In the time she'd gotten to know Mary she wondered if the woman was aware of how John felt. If she was she didn't seem at all concerned about it. She'd have to muse on that later though as the woman in question had arrived. Inwardly, she groaned. More wedding plans. She glanced over at Sherlock and wondered if she could convince him to help stop this sham of a wedding. No. The dragon spoiled John and would continue to spoil the man despite the pain it brought him. No, Sherlock wouldn't help. Perhaps though, there was someone else who would.

* * *

**If anyone can find a violin cover of sleepsong PLEASE let me know. I've had no luck thus far but I thought it would sound brilliant.  
**


	4. Chapter 4

**The Dragon's Companion**

Disclaimer:

I do not own BBC Sherlock.

Note:

Basically there are people who are creatures. They can look human but can make certain animal features of theirs appear/disappear at will to blend in with ordinary humans. There's prejudice between humans and creatures so they generally hide what they are.

**FaroreWorldshaper, brandyfaire **and** kiras70:** thank you for the reviews

* * *

**Chapter 4**

"Well this is certainly a surprise," Mycroft stated, ignoring the unpleasant expression on Meliora's face.

There was a reason why she didn't like Mycroft. Actually, there were two reasons: power and knowledge. Two very dangerous things to have. And to have both? Well, it meant at least double the danger. She didn't know what he did and she certainly wasn't aware of why. In the end, it didn't matter. What concerned her was what Mycroft _could_ do. And in some cases, what he _didn't_ do. Like allowing Sherlock to be tortured and then having the _nerve_ to ask for a thank you. Mrs Holmes had been far off. She didn't dislike Mycroft because Sherlock disliked Mycroft, though it certainly hadn't improved her opinion of the older dragon; she disliked him because she didn't trust him. However... Since she'd been living in London she had begun deciphering his motives. At least when it came to Sherlock. Still, she'd be cautious. There was a good reason for the phrase: Never tickle a sleeping dragon. And she would certainly know how bad an idea that could be. If it had not been for her agility and speed she would've been severely burned. "I need everything you can find on John's fiance." Sherlock had found flaws in all of John's previous girlfriends and that was really all she planned to do with Mary. However, what Mycroft would find for her would be something serious enough for them to team up.

* * *

"You've been spending an awful amount of time with Mycroft," Sherlock commented one evening as they lay cuddled together for a short nap.

The black-haired woman scoffed and muttered, "Absolutely torturous that is."

"Hm," the dragon hummed, "and yet you go quite willingly. And dare I say, he's actually attempted to time your interactions so I wouldn't notice them. As if his method of masking his scent wasn't completely obvious." He pauses for a moment before asking, "What is it you two could possibly be hiding?"

"Your surprise birthday party."

He snorts, "Dull. And you're a terrible liar."

"He's helping me plan a prank," she told him. For the record she was not a terrible liar. She was just purposely picking terrible lies.

"He's gone through too much trouble for a simple prank even if he were so inclined to do one at all."

"The world is ending. He told me I'm the only one who can save it."

"Try again."

"The government is currently running an experiment that could result in zombies and thus the Apocalypse so he's asking my opinion on what I want in my room in the underground safe house he's building."

This one made Sherlock pause, frowning.

She grins, knowing he can't see her face. "He's currently composing a list of who should get priority to be allowed to live there."

"Hmm, keep your secrets then," he told her, not wanting to admit he was unsure about the possibility of the last excuse she'd given him. Although, there was still a high probability it was a lie because if it was true she would not have hid such information.

Mary Morstan was a stillborn child. The true identity of the woman was unknown though one had to wonder about her history as Mary's past went back to the day John had moved in and agreed to work with Sherlock. There was also the fact that Mary had moved to London a week before Moriarty got himself arrested and had met John a month after Sherlock faked his death.

Mycroft didn't believe in coincidences like this and neither did Meliora. The thought that John's fiance could have a connection to Moriarty didn't set right with either of them. But everything was still circumstantial. They needed more information.

* * *

The marriage between John and Mary wasn't legalized. Mycroft ensured this after Mary's hidden weapons were found. It really wasn't looking good for the woman when someone had attempted to murder one of John's invited guests to the wedding.

Meliora hated wearing a dress. More than that she hated wearing a dress for this ludicrous wedding. It wasn't even real! Not the mention the fact the whole experience was crushing Sherlock's heart. She'd seen his expression fall when he noticed the maid of honor he'd been paired with earlier had found a guy to take home and had swept in to cheer him up by asking him for a dance. For a moment he'd been okay. Until he noticed John and that liar, Mary. The wolf had then secreted him out of the building. There was no need to rush back to the flat. On nights like these she understood his need to glide through the air though since he was unable to spread his wings in such a populated area they had to settle for running through the streets of London for their one on one game of cops and robbers. For a couple hours the world didn't matter and the black-haired woman was glad to be able to take her Dray's mind off his troubles for a while.

Mary would be watched and kept away from Sherlock. Unfortunately, neither Mycroft or Meliora knew someone else had been looking into the past of one Mary Morstan.

* * *

**This was mostly me skimming through the Sign of Three because I couldn't wait to start His Last Vow.** **So be prepared for John's reaction to Sherlock being in a relationship (cuz how could I NOT write that scene). Sherlock also realizes something unexpected has happened during the fake relationship with Janine.**


	5. Chapter 5

**The Dragon's Companion**

Disclaimer:

I do not own BBC Sherlock.

Notes:

Basically there are people who are creatures. They can look human but can make certain animal features of theirs appear/disappear at will to blend in with ordinary humans. There's prejudice between humans and creatures so they generally hide what they are.

I dedicate this chapter to my followers: **Franklin21**, ** 28505, RiverDragonWarrior, RyuNeko, TheCrystalEevee, brandyfaire, iTorchic, kiras70 **and** otala**

Also, a special thank you for **kiras70 **for the enthusiastic review** :) **I hope to see more in the future.**  
**

* * *

**Chapter 5**

Charles Augustus Magnussen. The man who could blackmail anyone and get away with it. Meliora's gut had twisted at the thought of the man and she knew she had to keep the dragon safe. Not from physical harm. No, that wasn't Magnussen's style. This man that Sherlock told her about had the dead eyes of a shark. She didn't disagree with that statement and briefly wondered if the man was a literal shark. Not that it would be any help if he was. One of her ears twitched as she heard someone come up the stairs.

The door opened to reveal Janine, Mary's maid of honor. She walked over to the wolf, one hand playfully tweaking one of her ears before dropping a kiss to the woman's lips. "Sherl not home?" She asked as she went to the kitchen and placed her bags on the table beside one of Sherlock's experiments.

"No," Meliora slightly grumbled, obviously displeased.

Janine almost giggled. After getting to know the two occupants of 221B it'd been plain to see that while Sherl and Meli wore hard exteriors for the world the pair were actually quite soft at heart. And oh so _adorable_.

The black-haired wolf glared.

This time she did laugh and only laughed more at the pout on her girlfriend's lips. "Oh don't worry so much. You said yourself that he was perfectly capable of taking care of himself."

She shifted, face flushing slightly.

Janine stared at her, a wide smile appearing as she suddenly understood. "You miss those cuddle puddle things."

Her face darkened just before she glanced away. She _did_ miss the cuddle puddles. Before Sherlock and Janine it wasn't something she'd done before although it was fairly common among wolves in general, group cuddling. Her green eyes landed on the groceries that her girlfriend had brought and she glanced back with a smile, "Missed my cooking, have you?"

"It's amazing you two ever got along before me," the other woman teased, "considering you both absolutely refuse to go out to buy groceries."

Meliora shrugged dismissively, "Mrs Hudson brings us food." She casually watched Janine put the groceries away.

She shot her a smile back over her shoulder. "Well no offense to Mrs Hudson but I think your cooking is the best I've ever tasted."

Her lips formed a sly smirk, "Flattery will get you nowhere."

Janine shut the cupboards and strut over to Meli's chair. "Oh really?"

She swallowed as her girlfriend straddled her lap and felt fingers going through her hair. Her eyes closed and she gave a low moan as nails scratched the base of her wolf ears, causing her to lower her forehead to Janine's shoulder. "Jaaaan," she whined.

"How about we go to bed early?" Jan whispered.

* * *

"Stay out of my bedroom."

Meliora knew that was Sherlock's way of informing her John was most likely going to go in if they didn't come out. She smirked. Ah, what a perfect opportunity for some revenge against John. She smiled at her girlfriend who wore nothing but a buttoned up shirt and her underwear, "Why don't you join Sherlock in the shower?"

Janine wrapped her arms around the wolf's waist from behind, setting her chin on her girlfriend's shoulder. "Are you sure you don't wanna join us?"

"You do recall what happened the last time we tried to all share a shower, don't you?" She questioned.

"Mm, that was rather disastrous, wasn't it?" The woman chuckled, pressing a kiss to her neck before pulling away. "Okay then." She put her hand on the doorknob but glanced back for a moment, "Breakfast?"

Meliora snorted, "I think Sherlock's gonna need it."

Janine opened the door, startled to see someone standing there. "Oh, John, hi," she greeted, pulling her shirt down a little. "How are you?"

Smirk in place, the green-eyed woman slid into view behind her girlfriend and was grateful to be wearing a slightly longer shirt, "Yes John, how _are_ you?"

"Janine?"

"Sorry," she apologized, feeling a bit embarrassed, "not dressed."

Meliora slipped around her girlfriend, walking past John and toward the kitchen.

"Okay, I'm just going to," she gestured toward the bathroom, "if you don't mind."

"Sherlock's in there."

Janine smiled, "Oh, I know."

Meli heard the bathroom door open and close and held in the urge to giggle. It threatened to bubble up again as John went back to sit down on the couch as she started the coffee maker and went about making breakfast.

* * *

"Good morning Meliora," Sherlock greeted, giving his pack mate a brief one arm hug around the waist while placing a kiss on her cheek.

She held up a cup of tea that he relieved her of as he walked out of the kitchen to sit in his chair.

"So, just a guess but you've probably got some questions." He took a sip of the tea before setting it on top of some books stacked near him.

"Yeaah, one or two," John replied.

"Naturally."

Jan's heels echoed as she walked back into the bedroom.

"You have a girlfriend?"

Meli's mouth quirked.

"Two actually." Sherlock glanced over at John. He wasn't one to be deterred from the more important topic. "Now, Magnussen. Magnussen is like a shark. Have you ever been to the shark tank at the London Aquarium John? Stood up close to the glass? Those floating flat faces, those dead eyes. That's what he is."

Meliora was starting to wonder if getting Sherlock to watch shark week with her had been a bad idea. He was becoming a bit shark obsessed.

"I've dealt with murders, psychopaths, terrorists, serial killers... None of them can turn my stomach like Charles. Augustus. Magnussen."

There's silence so she glances over. Her lips twitch at the sight of John's face. That smile. Whether she cares or not to know it is quite plain to her what that smile means and it fills her with triumph. Because it isn't a happy smile. It is disbelief, shock, puzzlement and the sinking feeling that John realizes he's not exactly happy although he doesn't understand why he isn't.

"You have."

The wolf almost snorts as she hears the dragon's confused 'Sorry, what?' and finishes wrapping up Janine's to-go breakfast.

"Yes you have girlfriends," John says.

"What?" Sherlock's brain catch's up quickly as he continues, "Yes. Yes. I'm going out with Janine and Meliora. I thought that was _fairly_ obvious."

"Yes. Well. Yes." John clears his throat and stutters out, "But I mean you-you-you are in a relationship?" With _two_ women, his mind shouts.

His brows raise for a moment before he sighs. Out of the corner of his eye he can see Meliora standing in the kitchen with an expression signaling how she's trying not to laugh. "Yes I am." His voice cracks slightly at the end and he notices the amusement drain slightly from the wolf.

"You, Janine and Meliora?"

"Hm," he nods once. "Yes. Me, Janine and Meliora."

"Care to elaborate?"

At this, Meli shoots John a glare. Like it's really any of his business. Plus, she's slightly worried about Sherlock's answer.

"Well we're in a good place," he tells John, "and it's um...very affirming." He gives the former blogger a short smile.

"You got that from a book."

One of her ears twitched and she missed the dragon's response as she heard Janine start walking toward them.

"Okay you two bad boys," the human woman starts as she goes toward Sherlock who now has a smile plastered on his face as he holds out his arm to signal her to sit on the arm of his chair. "Behave yourselves," she says as she sits with Sherlock's eyes still on her. "You Sherl," her voice lowers in volume, "are gonna have to tell us where you were yesterday."

"Working," he replies.

"Workin.' Of course. Just try not stay away too long." Then she whispered, "It takes twice the work to keep two women happy after all." She winked at him to let him know she wasn't scolding him, just reminding him.

His smile became less wide but more genuine. "I'll remember."

Janine turned her attention toward John. "I haven't told Mary about this. I kinda wanted to surprise her."

"Yeah, you probably will."

Meliora silently disagrees with John. Perhaps the woman-not-named-Mary won't be surprised at all.

"But we should have you two over for dinner real soon."

Sherlock agrees and Meli once again silently disagrees.

"My place though-"

"Janine, you're going to be late," the wolf reminds her. God, she inwardly groans. A dinner with John and Mary. Just what she _didn't_ want.

Janine stood up. "Oh, yes." She goes over to her girlfriend and gives her a brief kiss before taking the offered breakfast sandwich. "I shall see you later then." Then she goes over to the door which Sherlock is holding open. "It was brilliant to see you," she says to John before turning to Sherl.

"Have a lovely day. Call me later."

"I might do that," she says flirtatiously, kissing him. "Solve me a crime Sherlock Holmes."

Meliora rolls her eyes though she can't help but smile. She really did like Janine.

* * *

Sherlock watched Meliora out of the corner of his gaze as the wolf's attention was focused on the number of rings in front of them. He had brought her along in order to make up for the time missed but as he observed her he was starting to think she was taking picking out an engagement ring a little too seriously for a fake relationship even though he knew she was particularly picky when it came to buying anything. His eyes narrowed slightly. Was it possible Meliora had developed feelings for Janine? _Real_ feelings? More than the transferred attachment he had been expecting due to Janine's presence during his absence? It was why he had included her in this after all. He knew Meliora needed someone but this case meant he had to develop close relations with Janine and so his compromise had been for them all to be in a relationship. For Meliora to get close to someone so fast meant something was different because it had taken months for the wolf to count him as a pack mate and that was after several life and death situations in which they had rescued one another.

It was obvious what he was thinking about. Even an idiot would start to be suspicious after five different stores. But she _cared_. Even though she wouldn't even be the one proposing she _cared_ about the engagement ring. And it had occurred to her the reason why was because she _wanted_ to be engaged to Janine. With that thought had come the realization of exactly why that was. She'd had known something was different when they'd met but she hadn't thought it was this. How could she not have seen it sooner? Maybe then she wouldn't be ruining any chance she had at being with her mate. Now there was nothing she could do. This wasn't something she could change no matter how much she wanted.

"Meliora?" The consulting detective whispered.

Her eyes widened slightly in surprise. She hadn't really been paying much attention to the rings but somehow her vision had landed on it anyway. "This one," she exhaled in awe, pointing to the ring. "It's perfect."


	6. Chapter 6

**The Dragon's Companion**

Disclaimer:

I do not own BBC Sherlock.

Notes:

Basically there are people who are creatures. They can look human but can make certain animal features of theirs appear/disappear at will to blend in with ordinary humans. There's prejudice between humans and creatures so they generally hide what they are.

This chapter is dedicated to the following for having Favorited this fic: **Carissabanana**, **FaroreWorldshaper**, **Firelizard Tamer, cleopatrasenvy, ****mrsshadriss**, and **otala**

Playlist for Fic:

It's a bit of a WIP so let me know what you think of it so far

grooveshark dot com /playlist/The+Dragon+s+Companion+Universe/99505373

* * *

**Chapter 6**

One of the many advantages of Sherlock's dragon status being a secret was that no one really knew that when after being injured and he claimed it wasn't bad Sherlock was actually telling the truth. Any doctors who saw him were those either working for Mycroft or convinced to never reveal Sherlock's inhuman status. Well, the ones who were able to notice Sherlock wasn't human. The rest was an act by Sherlock himself. An act of being weak so that he would have an advantage. Really, the only reason he'd come so close to death was because of his depression. Why should he live? Even Meliora had found someone. Of course, then he had recalled that Mary was a threat, a danger to John. Not only John but probably Meliora too because the wolf would determinedly track down the person who had shot him. He had to warn them. He had to save John.

* * *

"-so it was all a lie?"

Sherlock frowned, forcing his eyes open at the sound of Janine's voice. "Meliora has not been lying about her feelings for you for some time."

Janine just gave the man a disbelieving, half amused look. "Oh really? What makes you say that?"

Green eyes widened in panic. "Sherlock, no. Don't-"

"She's imprinted on you."

The black-haired wolf groaned, slapping her forehead.

The human woman frowned, "Imprinted? What does that mean?"

Meliora's cheeks flushed slightly as her pack mate answered the inquiry.

"It means you're her life mate. You may be able to have a relationship with someone else but she won't be able to."

Janine blinked, stunned. She had known what life mates were. She didn't know how one was chosen but had looked up what it meant as soon as they had told her what Meli was. And of course, with that information she probably shouldn't have been so surprised. After all, it would explain why Sherl and Meliora had been rather light in their physical affection with one another though it was probably hidden by the fact neither were body shy. And a triad was probably against a creature's nature though she was unsure if having two mates was impossible or just rare. Still, the fact Meli was more affectionate with her than Sherlock was should've been an easily read sign.

The wolf's cheeks turned a darker shade of pink. "It's- I-"

"She dragged me to several stores to find the perfect engagement ring for you which indicates that she would marry you in the human way if same sex marriage was legal." Creatures didn't typically hold ceremonies like a wedding. They celebrated the union but the union itself was strictly between life mates. It was a very private affair but all creatures could sense when someone already claimed a life mate because as the term indicated, their kind mated for life. There was no fear of cheating unless a human was involved. They didn't cheat; were incapable of it. Humans on the other hand were very capable. It was one of the reasons why pairing with a human was looked on badly.

Meliora glared at the dragon.

Now Janine bit her lip, expression reflecting regret. She had thought it all a lie. That like with Sherlock, the affection Meli had shown had been an act.

Sherlock, of course noticed it immediately. "You sold it."

The wolf couldn't help the flash of hurt in her expression.

"I'm sorry," the human apologized. "I was a bit upset after John told me-"

"_**John**_," the black-haired creature snarled the name. That man was just oh so proud to hear Sherlock's relationship had been faked.

"Meliora," the consulting detective warned.

While she was still pissed off about the selfish man she pushed back her own furry. Only because she promised but also because there was someone else she could and would be taking her anger out on. It hadn't taken a genius to know who shot Sherlock. Especially since the dragon's first word upon waking had been the shooter's false name. Which was why she was insuring Sherlock wouldn't be alone in his hospital room. She'd even informed Mycroft of the situation who had advised her to keep silent until his brother could confirm the shooter. "Fine," she huffed. Before they could even bring up the subject Janine would have to leave the room. Her gaze softened as it landed on the woman. "Don't tell anyone it wasn't all fake."

Jan frowned, "Why?"

"I have a feeling I know who shot Sherlock and I don't want to chance them using you against me. It's best that you storm out as if you're upset with us."

She gave her a look. "I _am_ upset with you two."

At that, Meli gave her a look.

Janine grinned, "Alright. Not as upset as I should be but still rather disappointed."

The wolf ducked her head in guilt. She hummed as she felt the human rub her head.

"But I understand and I forgive you." Then her expression turned slightly stern but more amused as she added, "But you and I are going to have a talk after all this is over."

She looked up with a wolfish grin and nodded.

Janine kissed her softly before spinning around and leaving the room. She held in her urge to giggle as she put up a front of being upset.

Sherlock stared at Meliora's back. "Having a life mate suits you."

She turned around to glare at him due to his tone of voice, "Oh shut up."

A small smile curved his lips but his eyes were soft with sadness.

The green-eyed wolf sighed and walked over to his hospital bed. "You won't lose me Dray." She reached for his hand. "I would never abandon you," she reassured him, squeezing his hand.

The smile disappear after a moment as he became more serious. "So you think you know who the shooter is."

Her expression saddened, "I'm sorry I didn't tell you but it might interest you to know the marriage is fake."

His eyes narrowed slightly. "That's why you've been spending time with Mycroft."

She nodded before whispering, "He's tried to ensure this room is secure but I think it best that we went somewhere else to talk."

Sherlock nodded once. Mary had threatened John. He couldn't afford to underestimate her. This was not a fight he could afford to lose.

* * *

As far as Mary knew Sherlock had escaped the hospital by himself and Meliora had been frustrated at the lack of a trail to follow so everyone was searching for the consulting detective separately. But she had to find him first.

* * *

John was surprised to find his chair back in 221B, seeing as it had disappeared some time after his wedding, and had automatically sat down.

Meliora was in the room as John thought out loud, trying to figure out why Sherlock left even though it should be fairly obvious.

Then his gaze landed on the perfume on the side table. Claire de la lune. He went silent, simply staring at the bottle before he slowly looked up at Meliora. This non human was staring at him with her usual level of dislike. No, this woman was watching him as if waiting for something. His eyes briefly flashed back to the perfume for a moment before he looked at her again. "Take me to him."

Her green eyes flickered to the bottle and back to John, obviously contemplating something. She was, in fact, wondering if he was starting to understand the gravity of the situation. "Do not fall behind," she quietly told him before swiftly exiting the room. She wouldn't run at full speed but they would still be running to their destination.

* * *

A block away from their destination Meliora slows to a slightly brisk walk. "I suppose it's because I don't understand how you could ever forget him."

"What are you going on about now?" John asked, a bit out of breath.

She stops and turns her head to look at him.

He pauses, curious because of the honest confusion in her gaze.

"There are two reasons why I don't like you John. The first is because I don't understand how you could move on so easily after you thought Sherlock was dead."

He freezes but doesn't shout or yell because for once, yes she's obviously frustrated but she's also not trying to pick a fight. He can see she's merely being honest; simply expressing her inability to understand him. John supposes she's the better person then because he hasn't cared to understand her at all. "It wasn't easy." He pauses. "And I never forgot him. I thought about him every day. I still think about him every day." To his surprise she gives him a smile. Half a smile really but a genuine smile nonetheless. Just as they're about to enter one of the houses he asks, "Wait, what was the second reason?"

To this she gave him a very unimpressed look as she answered in a flat tone. "You're an idiot."

John's mouth opened and closed a couple times, unsure if she was still being serious or if she was joking with him.

* * *

**There will be some Johnlock teasing in the next chapter as well as John discovering that Sherlock is a dragon**


	7. Chapter 7

**The Dragon's Companion**

Disclaimer:

I do not own BBC Sherlock.

Notes:

Basically there are people who are creatures. They can look human but can make certain animal features of theirs appear/disappear at will to blend in with ordinary humans. There's prejudice between humans and creatures so they generally hide what they are.

I'm gonna dedicate this chapter to those few who have left reviews: **Serenityofthematrix**, **kiras70**,** FaroreWorldshaper**, **brandyfaire** and **otala**

* * *

**Chapter 7**

Meliora was crouched down beside John in the dark, her eyes narrowed and body tense. She was ready to pull John out of the way should Mary decide to shoot who she'd briefly thought was Sherlock and then later ready to tackle the liar if she decided to shoot the real Sherlock. Again. She mulled over whether or not she should attack her anyway but decided after seeing the her shoot that coin that while she was fast she was unsure if she could be fast enough even if they weren't in this narrow hallway. Although, even if Mary did shoot her she knew Sherlock would take down Mary right then and there. But she didn't want to hurt Sherlock so she waited. Sniper. From what she had revealed to both Sherlock and John it would be a hell of a coincidence if this woman _wasn't_ hired by Moriarty. After the lights turned on she text Mycroft. No doubt he would also want retribution from this woman. It was both her and Mycroft's right, not to mention instinct, to ensure Mary would never threaten their family ever again.

* * *

"Is Meliora going to kill her?" John asked Sherlock as the two of them sat in 221B.

Sherlock hadn't been surprised by his brother showing up to take Mary or the fact Meliora had accompanied him. "There's a high chance she will. And if she doesn't, Mycroft certainly will."

He looked up in slight surprise. "Mycroft?"

The consulting detective who was lying on the couch, staring at the ceiling, said nothing. Perhaps now would be the time to inform John of his true nature.

"I expected he would lock her up somewhere no one can reach her."

"If she hadn't almost killed me he likely would have but if the rest of the community found out what happened and that she was left alive it would be taken as a great insult and Mycroft would lose favor with a great many of his connections."

John frowned. He didn't understand why complete strangers would care so much. Hold on... "What community?"

Sherlock swung his legs over and his feet landed on the floor as he sat up. "Long before humans discovered our existence creatures created a government of their own. Due to the still existing prejudice this government still exists and is a carefully guarded secret. Even if the community didn't care about Mary's attempt to kill me the government would demand she die for trying to kill not only a creature but something as rare as a dragon."

He stared at him, mind whirling. "You're a bloody dragon?!" His eyes widened slightly as he saw his best friend's throat turn pink and then red before it expanded slightly.

The consulting detective opened his mouth and released small ring of fire into the air that turned into a smoke ring after a few seconds.

John stared at the smoke ring, the fear of catching on fire fading as he realized the threat was gone. "When were you planning on telling me?!"

"It never came up until now," the dragon replied.

"Never came -!" He started incredulously, "Sherlock-"

"I didn't deduce you to be the type of person to buy into that type of prejudice. 'It's all fine.' That was what you told me. Whether I'm human or not hardly seemed important when I'm required to hide what I am regardless."

To this, the doctor frowned. "Why required? Meliora doesn't seem to care-"

With a bewildered expression he asked, "Have you not noticed? The only ones she showed her true nature around were you, Mary, Mrs Hudson, Lestrade, Molly, Mycroft, Janine and myself. Admittedly that is a good number of people but my point is she hides around strangers." He paused. "I am required to hide it because there are such few dragons we're almost an endangered species. Meliora hides it out of habit and the fact it is easier to deal with other creatures than it is for a creature to have problems with a human and vice versa."

Then there was silence between them for a few minutes as John absorbed the information.

"So you're not really dating anyone then?"

Sherlock rolled his eyes, "I only needed Janine to gain access to-"

"I meant Meliora," the man interrupted.

He slowly tilted his head slightly as if musing on something. "No, I am not dating Meliora."

"Then why date her while you were dating Janine?"

The dragon frowned, "Because she needed me. Wolves tend to be tightly close-knitted pack and because her and I have been together for an extended amount of time she grew rather dangerously dependent on my presence. I could not simply abandon her for a fake relationship. Being in a fake relationship with her had more benefits than disadvantages."

John frowned deeply. He didn't want to think about what sort of benefits Sherlock got from the fake relationship.

His eyes narrowed as he took in his doctor's expression. "I did not have sex with either of them."

This seemingly random statement startled him, his eyes widen in shock and surprise.

"There is a common misconception about creatures losing control because of lust. We're no worse than humans. In fact, we tend to have more control over our urges. The fact is neither Meliora or myself believe in sex with anyone other than our life mates."

Just then the door opened and Janine walked in, closing the door behind her. She paused at the sight of Sherlock and John. "I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

"I was simply reassuring John I did not have sex with anyone," the dragon stated quite bluntly.

John's head whipped around to look at Sherlock.

Her eyes glanced between the two of them before she smiled, "Ah, alright."

"Reassuring?!"

"You were concerned," Sherlock pointed out.

John scoffed, "Why would I be concerned? It's none of my business who you do or don't shag."

Janine went to went to go sit in a chair in the kitchen, her brows having risen at John's jealous tone.

"I believe Meliora's exact words were 'John wants to have his cake and eat it too'."

The human woman watched them both with apparent amusement. It suddenly occurred to her this was why they hadn't been around John in the past month.

"Though I'm unsure exactly what she means by that," Sherlock admitted with a downturn of his lips.

"I think she meant John wanted Mary but also didn't want you in a relationship with someone," Jan added helpfully.

John just stared at her in utter disbelief. He didn't-! He wasn't-!

His frown deepened. "But that doesn't make sense."

"Come on John," she teased, "anyone with two eyes can see you were jealous."

"I wasn't jealous of Sherlock!" The man exclaimed.

The door opened again and Meliora walked in, throwing an irritated glare at John. "Of course you weren't jealous of Sherlock, you were jealous of us," she told him, motioning to both Janine and herself as she pulled a chair out to sit near Jan.

John opened his mouth to argue when Sherlock spoke up.

"John?" He asked, his voice quiet and slightly broken. Did John not want him to be happy with someone?

John turned his head toward Sherlock, surprised to see how vulnerable his best friend looked in this moment. He'd seen his sad puppy dog look before. Many times. Sherlock could be rather manipulative. But he had never seen this fear or vulnerability as if with one wrong word he could shatter the consulting detective. Seeing those eyes directed solely at him with such yearning.. it felt like time had frozen. "I..." Okay, so maybe he had been jealous. Maybe he hadn't thought it possible for Sherlock to be in a relationship with anyone. But even if he admitted to himself that he had wanted more than friendship he never thought it possible his feelings would ever be returned. Yet with the way Sherlock was looking at him... Was it possible?


	8. Chapter 8

**The Dragon's Companion**

Disclaimer:

I do not own BBC Sherlock.

Notes:

Basically there are people who are creatures. They can look human but can make certain animal features of theirs appear/disappear at will to blend in with ordinary humans. There's prejudice between humans and creatures so they generally hide what they are.

I'm gonna dedicate this chapter to **paintear10** for the seven brilliant reviews I was pleasantly surprised to see yesterday.

* * *

**Chapter** **8**

Green eyes shifted from the dragon to the man and back again, her mouth curving in amusement.

The dragon blinked and as if the previous conversation had not taken place he looked over at the wolf and asked, "I expected you'd take longer."

Janine frowned in confusion.

Meliora's lips pursed in a pout of displeasure, "It was stated that as your pack-mate it was my right to draw first blood-"

"-however as my brother it was his right to draw her last breath," Sherlock finished, understanding. "But there's something else," he continued as he watched her expression. "Some other reason you're upset with..." His eyes widened slightly in realization, "He made you family."

The wolf's left eyebrow twitched in irritation.

"And in return you welcomed him into the pack." Now the consulting detective also looked displeased. "Terms?"

The political ramifications were...well the reason why Meliora was so stingy with who she declared pack. When Mycroft had declared her family it would have been an insult _not_ to call the dragon a pack-mate. There was no getting out of that. It was the creature crossover that gave her a headache. Dragons didn't have packs. They had family. Although they rarely hung around each other it was a dragon's obligation to see to the protection of his family. Mycroft's family now included Meliora and whoever she took as a life mate along with any future offspring. It also gave Mycroft the right to negotiate Meliora no longer being Sherlock's Alpha but for her to act in his stead while he was not there. Meliora refused but could not refuse negotiations on the matter. In fact, nothing really changed when it came to Sherlock. She was still his Alpha and Mycroft still did his best to protect him. The only real change was that they needed to consult one another when making important decisions and agree or compromise. "We have to talk over important decisions." Also, if Mycroft came knocking she was obligated to at least listen. No more slamming the door in his face. At least not if he insisted on still talking to her after she did that.

Sherlock's chin rested on the tips of his fingers, his hands pressed together as if in prayer. "It could've been worse."

"Would someone care to explain?" John asked.

"Dull," the dragon sighed, leaning back in his chair.

"I'd rather not," the black-haired wolf said when the two humans looked at her.

* * *

Just because she has a photographic memory does not mean she doesn't forget things. For instance, everyone knows 1+1=2. However, when you're not consciously thinking about 1+1 there's no reason to know the answer is 2. At least this is how she justifies how she briefly forgot about Sherlock's remaining problem, the disgusting shark that is Magnussen. Still, despite everything this does not mean that she did not help Sherlock form a plan. And a back-up plan. She knows Sherlock likes to always go with plan A or improvise but there is many a time when Meliora has secretly had a backup plan. Or two. Occasionally three if she believes she can predict enough circumstances. So, needless to say, when Christmas came around she felt ready for anything.

It was a plan within a plan.

Plan A: Sherlock would 'steal' Mycroft's laptop to trade to Magnussen in exchange for seeing Appledore. Just because Mary was gone didn't mean the man would stop trying to blackmail Sherlock. Magnussen was a danger to John and Meliora and Sherlock would ensure their safety. Mycroft would follow the chip in the laptop and seize Magnussen and Appledore.

Plan B: This was Meliora's plan with Mycroft. If anything went wrong and the pack was in danger...Magnussen would find himself shot. The weapon would be untraceable and any trace of who had been holding the sniper rifle would be non-existent. It was for this reason that Plan A had been put off until Christmas. Meliora was a good enough shot but she needed to be able to make a professional-looking shot. From there it could easily be assumed that someone had sent a professional to follow Sherlock to Magnussen and take the man down. After all, the shark-like man had many enemies.

Plan B took effect when the wolf spotted the pained expression on the dragon's face as Magnussen flicked John's face. She waited for Sherlock to take John's gun. It would not be until the weapon was examined that it would be found that not only was John's gun full of blanks but that the actual bullet hole was on the wrong side of the head and according to forensics had hit the head from a much further distance. By then the gun and any other evidence would be disposed of.

**After New Years**

This year definitely won the title of best even though the previous one with Sherlock had been by far the best of her life. Not only did Meliora have a pack but a family. She wouldn't have believed it possible if someone had told her a year ago that this year she had stopped running and hiding, that she found a life mate she was now engaged to, that said life mate had actually proposed to her, that Sherlock's depression was quickly lifting, and that their family was actually safe for the first time in a very long time. Now if only John and Dray would hurry up and admit their feelings for one another already!

Janine watched over her fiance, her eyes soft with love and amusement. Although they had yet to have sex she felt closer to Meli more than she had to anyone else. She didn't mind waiting until after their marriage. Besides, holding off on sex meant more time to make John jealous and hopefully confess. Her eyes wandered over to Sherlock who was lying beside her wolf. Both of them made sure to inform the consulting detective in front of John, multiple times, that he was welcome to join them in bed. After all, the flat only had two bedrooms. Traditionally John took up his old room upstairs while Meliora shared with Sherlock. If there had been room she would have moved in officially but... Well, it was just one more reason to attempt to convince John to accept Sherlock as something more than a platonic partner. Not that she minded sharing a bed with Sherlock. She understood her life mate's need to cuddle with the pack and even teased Meli about the fact that this meant they'd have to include John. The wolf had simply grumbled that as long as John didn't specifically cuddle up to her, she was fine. And who knew, maybe seeing Sherl happy would be just the thing to get Meliora to stop disliking John so much.

Someone knocked on the closed bedroom door.

The green-eyed creature growled lowly, tightening an arm around Sherlock.

She smiled at her fiance.

"Sherlock?" John's muffled voice came from the other side of the door. "Greg says he has a case for you."

The dragon sat up, paying no mind to his pack mate who wrapped her limbs around his neck and waist as he stood up to open the door.

Janine held in a giggle at John's expression when catching sight of the woman on Sherl's back.

The wolf nuzzled her face against the side of Sherlock's neck and mumbled, "Too comfy to move."

As his friend was clinging to him with her own strength and in no way impeding his ability to move at the moment, he allowed it. She wasn't very heavy after all.

Lestrade raised an eyebrow at the sight but otherwise ignored the fact a grown woman was on Sherlock's back as he explained the current case.

The black-haired woman cracked one eye open slightly, searching out John. She refrained from grinning as she saw how he shifted from one foot to the other, occasionally clearing his throat and so obviously trying _not_ to look at her. Truthfully, she didn't dislike him as much as she used to. Now the human was just annoying the hell out her. She knew he was aware of his own feelings by now but for some reason despite no longer pursuing anyone (the man was turning down date offers even) he still had not confessed his feelings to Sherlock. She'd be satisfied if he even just asked Sherlock for a date. Marriage would be better but for god's sake, was some obvious sign to Sherlock that he saw him as more than a friend too much to ask?! Was it?!

* * *

Janine walked into 221B to the sight of Meli pouting. "No such luck then?" She asked as she sat on the arm of the chair the wolf was sitting in.

Her pout grew for a moment before disappearing into a grin. She looked up at her human, "He made some funny faces when I started grooming Sherlock."

"Groomin- Meli, exactly what did you do?" Jan questioned curiously.

"Well, as you know he's got the most ridiculously soft hair. Occasionally I try to count the number of strands of hair he has. Sherlock keeps track on how far I get before getting bored. Thanks to John I've broken my record." The wolf stated quite proudly.

"Only you two," she commented with a light chuckle as she leaned over and pressed her lips against the creature's forehead.

Her smile brightened.

"So what else did you do today?"

Meliora's smile turned into a small smirk.

* * *

"Sherlock?"

The consulting detective pressed his hands together under his chin as he thought. This case was only a 5 and therefore he didn't feel the need to use his more-than-human strength to bust the door open. However, if his suspicions about the one who had locked them in here was correct such an easy escape might not be possible.

"Sherlock?"

If he was wrong this would possibly bring the case up to a 6. Unlikely but possible. But if he was right, why would she lock them in this room? Why now? Why at all?

_"...and if I have to lock you both up to prove it..."_

His eyes narrowed slightly as he recalled snippets of one of the wolf's rants, one he had mostly tuned out as he'd been busy thinking about a case.

_"..just so obvious there's even a bet going on at the yard."  
_

What had she been talking about?

_"Sherlock? Are you even listening to me?" The wolf sighed, "You haven't heard a word I said about-"_

"Sherlock!"

The dragon blinked as he noticed John standing over him. "Yes John?"

"I've been calling your name for the past five minutes," the man sighed in exasperation. "The door's locked."

"Hm. Obvious."

"And you didn't feel the need to tell me?"

"Knew you'd figure it out on your own. I was busy determining why."

John took a moment to think. "Why, not who? Who locked us in here then?"

"Meliora. Or there is the less likely chance that it has to do with the case. Doubtful. Locking us in this room would serve no purpose. The killer would have had to be extremely stupid to lock us in here with the ability to easily phone someone. Or in this case, text. Which is what I did the moment I realized the door was locked and there were no other viable exits. Lestrade should be here soon."

Once again, the human needed a moment to process. "Alright, so why did she lock us in here then?"

"No idea," he slowly replied.

* * *

Janine stared at her life mate. "Won't he be able to just tell Greg to open the door?"

Her smirk widened.

**2 hours ago**

_If Sherlock asks you to come get him or unlock a door ignore him. I've locked him in with John until they finally admit their feelings for one another. _

_-Meliora_

Lestrade shook his head, smiling as he read the text message.

**Present**

"Shouldn't he be here by now?" John asked.

Sherlock frowned. Meliora must've told Lestrade to ignore them. He stood up and began examining the room. He checked each of the walls, the door and the ceiling. From what he observed from the outside the walls were too thick to force his way through as they were solid rather than hollow. If the ceiling had been high he might have been able to gain enough speed to punch through but there wasn't enough room. It was the same with the door. The room was simply too small for him to gain enough speed to ram through the thick door since he could see the shadow of something leaning against it from the outside from the crack at the bottom. There was a ventilation shaft but it was too small for even a child to use. It was however a weak spot he might be able punch through though. His eyes flickered briefly over to John. "I'm going to have to reveal some of my creature form in order to get us out."

* * *

**Next chapter, John is apparently once again clueless. This time about life-mates. Meliora leaves Sherlock to shed some light on this topic. Hopefully this idea will go better than her last.**


	9. Chapter 9

**The Dragon's Companion**

Disclaimer:

I do not own BBC Sherlock.

Notes:

Basically there are people who are creatures. They can look human but can make certain animal features of theirs appear/disappear at will to blend in with ordinary humans. There's prejudice between humans and creatures so they generally hide what they are.

* * *

**Chapter 9**

John blinked. He had wondered about it. He knew what Meliora really looked like or at least some part of it. Janine had hinted to him that he hadn't seen everything but still, he hadn't seen any sign of Sherlock's except for the time the man had blown that small ring of fire.

Normally he wouldn't have cared about being locked up but after being imprisoned and tortured he now found he strongly disliked being anywhere without an exit. He pulled off his gloves and stuffed them in his coat pocket. The vent was higher so he would need to jump at it to increase the impact of his punch but once he made a reasonably size hole he could simply start pulling and pushing the edges to enlarge it.

He blinked in surprise as his friend's eyes seemed to take on a ethereal appearance. It was almost like they were glowing. He didn't notice the scales that seemed to appear and grow over Sherlock's fingers.

The scales grew over his hand and wrist, creeping up his arm underneath his sleeves. He pulled back his arm, jumped and punched through the area where the vent met the wall. The vent screeched and bent while the edge of the wall broke off.

John pulled his sweater over his face so he wouldn't inhale the dust.

The vent fell to the floor.

Sherlock didn't waste time as he worked on enlarging the hole.

* * *

One of Meliora's dog ears twitched and she cringed. Apparently the place she had locked them in hadn't been strong enough to hold them.

Janine raised a brow at her before the door to the flat was opened to reveal John and Sherlock, both covered in a thick layer of dust and pieces of concrete.

Cool eyes landed on Meliora.

The wolf flinched. "Sherlo-"

"Why," the consulting detective interrupted.

Jan stood up, believing it best if the two were left alone and so pulled John out of the room to wait downstairs.

"Dray," she started after the door closed, only to be cut off again.

"Why," he demanded, his tone harsh.

The wolf's ears flattened against her head. "I just wanted you and John to have a chance to talk."

Sherlock stared at her in disbelief and confusion.

"You know, without the distraction of a case or anything."

He frowned, not understanding why she'd want such a thing.

"So you two could admit something very meaningful to each other." Seeing the dragon's expression made her sigh in exasperation. "Really Sherlock? I've explained this like five times already." Still seeing his blank face, she growled out slightly, "Your feelings Sherlock! I wanted you and John to talk about your feelings!"

This time he gave her a look. "I already told you of my decision not to tell John."

Meliora threw her hands with a huff before letting them fall again. "But Mary's gon-

"I don't deserve him."

Her green eyes narrowed as she gave him a sharp look. "Let's not talk about who we think deserves who."

Sherlock's expression softened, "You do deserve Janine."

"I do not!" She shot back. "But she chose me and that's what matters. You can't take away someone's choice."

* * *

John stood at the foot of the stairs where Janine was sitting. He wish he knew what they were saying. Indecipherable shouting could be heard and he winced. This was the first time he'd ever heard them fight before. "So," he started.

The woman looked up at him.

"Do you know why she locked us in that room?"

She stared at him, wondering if he'd admit it to her. "She's been rather impatient about him finding a life mate."

He frowned, "But that doesn't explain why..." His eyes widened in surprise. "_Me?_ Meliora actually wants Sherlock to choose me?!"

Neither of them noticed that the door had opened.

"Why am I not surprised you think this is all about you," the wolf said gruffly, thoroughly annoyed.

His brows drew together. "So you don't want Sherlock and I to be together?"

The black-haired creature looked upward, "Good grief. How naive can you possibly be? Do you really have no idea how people become life mates?" She looked down at him to see his slightly annoyed expression.

"Aren't they all different though?"

She stared at him for a moment. "Wow." Meli was in utter awe at his ignorance. "All this time spent around two creatures and you can't even be bothered to use the internet to look up the term life mate."

He looked back and forth between the non-human and Janine who actually seemed a bit _embarrassed_ of all things.

"I knew what it meant," Janine felt the need to point out.

Green eyes blinked once before glancing at her.

"I looked it up when you and Sherl first told me you were a wolf." With a smile, she added, "I just didn't know it was me."

John's frown deepened.

She gave her life mate a grin, "Yeah, well, Sherlock didn't know either until the ring."

"And when did _you_ know?" Jan questioned with a smile.

"At the wedding. When I saw you attach yourself to someone I knew you were planning to sleep with. I knew there was something different but I didn't know what it was until I was picking out a ring."

Janine walked up the stairs and replied in a low voice, "The day we first met?"

Meliora kept her eyes on the woman in front of her. "That's generally the day it happens," she answered softly. "Creatures are actually the ones that started the 'love at first sight' thing. Although we don't tend to fall in love with our life mates so quickly it may seem that way."

John cleared his throat. "Um, sorry to interrupt-"

"No he isn't," the wolf grumbled, her head having fell forward so her forehead rested on Janine's shoulder.

"-but are either of you going to explain what it is I'm missing?"

She growled lowly.

The human woman's mouth quirked up in a half smile. "Why don't we go to my place and let them sort this out?"

The wolf grinned and gave her a short but deep kiss before saying, "God I love you!" She ducked inside the door of the flat to pull out Jan's coat as well as her own jacket before tugging on her life mate's hand to lead her down the stairs. "Ta! We'll be back tomorrow," she told John quite happily before both of the women disappeared outside.

"Talk to Sherl," was all Janine could get in before the door was slammed shut.

John stood there, surprised at their quick retreat. After a few moments he shook his head and went back upstairs and into the flat.

Sherlock was sitting in his chair. His eyes flickered up to his companion. "John."

He came forward and sat down in his own chair facing the consulting detective. "Janine said I should ask you about life mates." He saw an emotion flash before the dragon's eyes but it was gone again before he could determine what it was.

"Clearly." His hands came under his chin as he took his thinking pose. "What do you know about life mates?"

"Oh. Well, that creatures mate for life and I suppose by what Meliora said that they all know if someone is their mate when they meet them."

"Wrong. All creatures do mate for life and there is a reaction that happens when first contact is made; first contact either meaning actually talking to, coming into physical contact with them or even something as passive as mutual eye contact. However, it is exceedingly rare to know what that reaction means until more obvious clues are given. If Meliora hadn't entered into a fake relationship with Janine it would've taken longer for them to enter into a real relationship as she would have most likely tried to resist the pull toward her life mate until she realized what it was."

"So you don't get to chose your life mate?"

"There's been some debate about how the process occurs. The most recent is that our subconscious mind taps into a greater percentage of our brain than our conscious mind does and calculates compatibility as well as the needs of our life mate. It would perhaps explain why creatures never want to divorce and certainly never betray their mate with the exception of when one of the pair is human. Humans are generally more difficult to understand."

He frowned, looking down in thought. "And Meliora locked us in this room because she was impatient about you finding your life mate." John looked at him long time friend. "Sherlock, why does Meliora think I'm your life mate?"

Sherlock simply stared at him, expression calm and unassuming. "Why indeed."

He was unsure how long he spent staring at Sherlock when he finally spoke again. "Am I?"

Blue eyes narrowed. "Are you what?"

"Am I your life mate?"

"Why would it matter?" He had informed the wolf of this. It hardly mattered what he felt if John didn't feel the same. No matter what she said or implied he knew full well John didn't-

"It matters Sherlock because I have the right to know whether or not I'm your life mate!"

"You're not gay."

"No. But that doesn't matter because you're Sherlock."

The person in question stared at him quizzically. What was that supposed to mean?

John sighed, exasperated. "I'm not gay."

Blue eyes narrowed. He knew that. The man said it often enough.

"I've never fancied men and I doubt I ever will. But..."

Sherlock's breath caught in his throat.

His expression softened as he saw his friend frown, "You're not like anyone else. You're you. And amazingly enough the only problem I had when realizing what I felt was not that you were a guy...and not even that you're a dragon..."

The consulting detective felt his heartbeat skip a beat.

He laughed lightly. "Though it seems obvious now that of course you'd be some sort of rare creature." John smiled at him somewhat sadly, "Anyway, even that didn't bother me as much as the knowledge that you'd never..." He sighed, looking down at the floor. A moment passed and he saw Sherlock's shoes come into view.

The dragon crouched down in front of John's chair, putting his hands on the human's knees. "John," he breathed.

The human looked into the creature's eyes. He felt his friend's hand slide to the back of his neck.

How had he been so oblivious? How had he not seen it? He cursed himself for not trying hard enough and giving John the impression the man hadn't stood a chance. He hadn't known the night he had told John he was married to his work that the same man would prove to be just as important, more important, than any case.

Oh god. Sherlock hadn't known how he felt. And now he was going to let him down, tell him that Meliora made a mistake and that- ...was Sherlock kissing him? He closed his eyes and kissed back. The kiss ended abruptly when his friend pulled away.

"It's you," he told his human. "You're my life mate."

John blinked, taking a moment to process what was said. The kiss had been chaste and innocent but it had affected him more than even the most passionate of kisses had before that moment. When he did finally realize what Sherlock said he realized he was being carried! "Sher-"

"I need to ensure no other creature would dare harm or pursue you romantically," the dragon cut him off.

"Sher-"

"Nothing permanent of course. Although you are my life mate I believe we should wait before mating and thus giving you my mark. Perhaps do that 'dating' thing you always insist on when in a relationship. Of course I'll have to make sure you're informed about what it means to be mine. Not that this means I'm not yours but creature policy-"

John tuned out. What had he gotten himself into? He felt Sherlock place him on the bed and looked up to see Sherlock's smoldering gaze. His mouth went dry. What was the man-dragon planning on doing with him now?


	10. Chapter 10

**The Dragon's Companion**

Disclaimer:

I do not own BBC Sherlock.

Notes:

Basically there are people who are creatures. They can look human but can make certain animal features of theirs appear/disappear at will to blend in with ordinary humans. There's prejudice between humans and creatures so they generally hide what they are.

* * *

**Chapter 10**

It had turned out that when Janine had hinted to him not seeing all of Meliora's creature self...she wasn't exaggerating. It seemed the more he learned the more embarrassed he was at how little he actually knew. For one, creatures had a total of three forms. In one they could look completely human (human form). In another they were what the general population of humans believed creatures to truly look like (mid form). The last form was their complete creature form, a form that as far as most humans were concerned was merely a myth as only creatures and human life mates were allowed such knowledge. Meliora for instance, appeared as a wolf. It was explained to him though that due the not only what Sherlock was but because of his size that they would all have to go on holiday somewhere secluded so the consulting detective could show John what his dragon form looked like. John was a little overwhelmed seeing as he'd only discovered he was Sherlock's life mate the day before but because Sherlock appeared excited even though Mycroft was the one who made arrangements for them, he didn't argue. Besides, it would be nice to go on holiday. And he'd never gone somewhere with Sherlock without it involving a case. Not like this at least. Still, whatever he'd been expecting he really should've seen it coming that their housing would come in the form of at least a mansion but this went even behind that. This was...and he was not exaggerating, a literal castle that appeared built into the side of a mountain. He was surprised to see Sherlock's form change the second they were all indoors.

Sherlock turned toward John to reveal the bright ethereal eyes returned, followed by sharp fangs. Dark scales went up the side of his neck and behind his now pointy elf-like ears, blending in with his dark curls.

Janine and Meliora watched a wide-eyed John as the consulting detective took off not only his coat but his dress shirt.

The scales on his neck went across his shoulders, a line down his arms and around his wrists and over his hands where his nails had thickened and curled slightly. The scales also completely covering his back where two large webbed wings appeared folded and tucked in.

John looked down Sherlock's body to see the scales curling around his torso but not touching his chest or stomach.

Meliora, who had also changed to her mid form just grinned and ran past him, her knuckles brushing against the scales on his arm as she pasted, "You're it!"

The dragon blinked before his lips curved up into a small smirk. He turned around and took off after her.

John raised his brows with a slight frown.

The other human shook her head with a smile. "Those two." Turning toward John she said, "Guess we'll have to find our own way around here until they're done with their game."

"Do they play like this often?" Because this was the first time he'd ever even heard of it, much less seen it. He hadn't thought Sherlock would be the type to play such a childish game. Then again, wasn't that what chasing after criminals was? A dangerous game of tag?

* * *

While their life mates were off playing John and Janine explored the castle. The first floor was discovered to hold the kitchen, a dinning room, a living room, a library and two locked doors. Upon traveling up the stairs on one side they found out the library continued and the other door was, again, locked. Walking across to the other side of the second floor revealed several bedrooms of which only three were found to hold any personal items. Obviously these were the rooms of the Holmes brothers and their parents. It was only upon realizing that they hadn't seen their life mates since the two had run off that they had no clue as to where the wolf and dragon had went.

* * *

"Nice den," was all Meliora could say upon entering the Holmes dragon lair. The ceilings probably weren't high enough for flight in his creature form but it was more than enough space for his mid form. The area was otherwise very vast and wide. So much so that while the area was well lit she couldn't really tell how far the multiple dragon-sized hallways went. She briefly wondered if it was a dragon-sized version of the human side of the castle and nearly snorted at the thought of Mycroft the dragon sitting on a dragon-sized toilet, holding a dragon-sized newspaper and giving her one of those 'do you mind' looks with a slight tilt of his head. Of course then the thought of Sherlock in his dragon form doing experiments with perhaps some safety goggles on his head and swirling the contents of a beaker in one of his claws came to her and a short laugh escaped her.

Sherlock raised his brows at her but didn't ask.

* * *

John spent the night in Sherlock's room, sleeping beside the consulting detective who was sleeping on his stomach with one wing stretched out over him. But when he woke up the following morning his life mate had disappeared. He made his way down the stairs and into the kitchen but saw no sign of the dragon. After making some coffee he discovered Sherlock was neither in the dining room, the library or the living room. He returned to the kitchen to find Meliora in mid form, cooking breakfast. "Have you seen Sherlock this morning?"

She didn't glance up from the pan but replied, "Disappeared this morning did he?"

"Er, yes."

"Hm," she hummed. "He's probably-"

"Good morning," Janine unknowingly interrupted as she opened the door, walking up to Meli and placing a kiss on her neck.

She gave a low appreciative growl before turning away from the food and capturing the woman's lips in a kiss. "Morning," she whispered huskily, lips forming a crooked grin as they stared into each others eyes, smiling.

John cleared his throat.

Jan blushed, "Oh, hello John. I didn't see you there."

"Clearly," he murmured to himself.

The wolf shot him a brief glare before turning her attention back to the pan of bacon and eggs.

"So have _you_ seen Sherlock this morning?"

The woman frowned as she took a sip of Meliora's coffee. "Sorry, no." She glanced at her wolf, "Meli?"

She turned off the stove and started separating the food onto four different plates. When she was done she placed a kiss to her human's cheek, "I'll go get him."

"I guess we'll have to set the table then," Janine said, smiling at John.

* * *

Meliora was not surprised to find a large dragon in the den, sulking over his failure. She shook her head. "Couldn't get it on by yourself then?"

He snorted, turning his head to glare at the offending object.

"I'll help you put it on later. Besides, you won't exactly fit in the kitchen like this."

The dragon turned his head to look at her.

"Don't give me that look," she told him, glaring. "I know full-well it takes more energy to maintain creature form." At his continued stare, she growled, "I am your Alpha and I demand you change back and eat breakfast with us!"

The large dragon shrunk down almost in the blink of an eye until he was back in mid form again though...completely naked. "I can hunt if I get hungry," he scowled at her even as he pulled his underwear and pants back on.

"You'll attend to your life mate Sherlock Holmes or so help me-"

"What's wrong with John?" He cut her off, suddenly looking worried.

Her expression softened and she sighed, "Even I know better than to leave my life mate alone at meal times even if I don't eat more than a cracker. It's considered bonding time. You're supposed to provide for him Sherlock. Tell me you are at least aware of that."

Sherlock frowned slightly. "I am...still growing accustomed to the idea." To a degree he already did. He already did his best to protect John both physically and emotionally but the rest... the rest was new to him. Providing meant keeping John happy. With the exception of bringing John on cases and making sure John ate he wasn't really sure how to accomplish this. He had proposed that they date but as he himself had never been on one (despite his fake relationship experience) he was unsure how to proceed in that aspect. But dating made John happy so he would try. The only other thing he could think of was sex but that would have to wait until they were ready to be officially bonded as he didn't think he could resist making John his otherwise. Still, the question lingered in his head. What could he do to make John Watson happy?

* * *

John didn't actually expect Sherlock to show up in the dinning room and if he did it was probably only to have a cup of tea. Well, Sherlock did come. And he did have tea. However, he also ate breakfast with only a sigh to show his displeasure at the situation.

"I suppose since Sherlock's not going to explain his eating habits that I'll have to do it for him," Meliora said as she also took her seat at the table.

The human man frowned. She had his attention.

"Creatures have a vast variety of different diets. The big difference is is how often we need to eat and why. I personally need to eat at least one meal a day. Sherlock only needs to eat once a week. We can eat more than that obviously but we don't _need_ to. However, if we are using our creature form we require more than that. Depending on our creature and if we are in mid form or full creature form we could go from simply eating a little more to a lot more. For instance, since I use my mid form quite regularly I only need two meals a day. For my creature form that would rise to three meals a day. Not really that big of a difference."

John nodded in understanding.

"But for Sherlock's mid form he is required to eat four times a week and for his creature form I'd say he'd need to eat the standard human three meals a day."

"Unless I eat a cow," the dragon interrupted with a slight smirk.

The black-haired wolf rolled her eyes. Her pack mate really would go hunt down a cow just so didn't have to deal with eating so often.

"A cow?" John asked, brows raised in disbelief.

"Well I suppose pigs would do in a pinch but I don't particularly care for the taste of the mud they like to roll in."

Meliora nodded. She didn't much care for the mud either...or the thick wool of a sheep. But you can't always be picky when it comes to survival. Jungles and forests held better prey. Less fluffy and more fun to hunt. "Depending on how much time he spent in full creature form he might not have to eat any more than he does in mid form." Then she shot Dray a look to remind him of what they had just discussed earlier. She looked away when he at least appeared to be slightly cowed...er, no pun intended though a cow did sound quite fabulous. Or anything she could catch from a hunt. She'd have to ask Sherlock later.


	11. Chapter 11

**The Dragon's Companion**

Disclaimer:

I do not own BBC Sherlock.

Notes:

Basically there are people who are creatures. They can look human but can make certain animal features of theirs appear/disappear at will to blend in with ordinary humans. There's prejudice between humans and creatures so they generally hide what they are.

I dedicate this chapter to: **zaylo267**, **nina-hany**, **Serenityofthematrix**, **ebonymystikwolf**, **AwaitingTheInevitable**, **merlynnllwyd**, **mayflower55**, **Hikaru Mioko**, **OwlFruit**, **vixxoxo**, **the-woman-of**, **wildchild033**, and **Raineh14**. Thank you for following my fic :)

* * *

**Chapter 11**

Sherlock wasn't used to doing something as pointless as small talk. Most especially when there was no ulterior motive and there was something he would much rather be doing. However, as he glanced at John and saw him smiling as Janine talked about something he had long ago tuned out, his inner tension relaxed slightly and he felt his mouth curve up in the slightest of smiles. His cool blue eyes met Meliora's green ones when he glanced her way.

She smiled at him. It didn't take a genius to figure out the dragon was itching to change back into his full creature form. Her smile turned into a smirk for a brief second before smiling brightly at her life mate. "Sherlock and I are going out. There's not a lot of food in the cabinets or the fridge."

Jan gave her soon-to-be wife an amused smile. As if she could be fooled. "Alright. Have fun."

"Mind if I go with?" John was surprised by the looks he got from the women.

The dragon looked a little embarrassed. "Perhaps later," he said as he stood up and left the room.

The man frowned in confusion as Meli placed a kiss on Jan's cheek and swiftly followed. "Did I miss something?"

Janine sighed, shaking her head.

* * *

Unsurprisingly, there were a number of animals to hunt but Meliora hadn't expected elk, moose, and caribou all so close to their vacation area. Then again she supposed Mycroft would want to ensure Sherlock didn't go hungry just because he was too stubborn to eat in human or mid form. Maybe they could show their mates how good they were at hunting. Green wolf eyes glanced over to see the dragon landing. She ran to catch up to him as he entered the den.

* * *

Sherlock was not as enthusiastic as Meliora was about the idea of hunting with their life mates. Not because he didn't want to but because he was unsure how John and Janine would react. He knew this was likely to be a cross-species issue. Would their humans understand how this was a bonding activity for them as a pack as well as life mates? He hoped for the wolf's sake things didn't go wrong. He knew what it meant for Meliora to finally have a pack to share things with and while as a dragon he wasn't naturally inclined to have the pack mentality after Mary had taken precedence in John's life and having Meliora support him he could understand the need to share experiences and keep those important close.

* * *

John's brows knitted together. "So...you want to take us hunting?"

"We want to show you how we hunt," Meliora corrected, green eyes sparkling. "You guys can pack a lunch if you like or I could chase down a couple rabbits for you."

Janine smile nervously. "So will we be camping out there or just going out for the hunt?" She wasn't the type to hunt anything down or watch an animal be hunt down. But she knew this was important to her life mate so she'd give it a try.

The other human blinked. Camping. His time in the military was as close as he ever came to camping but it didn't sound too bad. He'd never thought Sherlock would be the type though. Of course he'd never imagined that the consulting detective would be a hunter either. Although, now knowing he was a creature he supposed it made sense. And he was curious to see Sherlock's creature form in action.

"Camping," the dragon replied after reading John's body language.

* * *

His black scales had spread to cover his large body, grey scales covered his underbelly as he fell on all fours. His bat-like wings grew and horns grew in a line up his cheekbones and on top of his head while a tale grew out, the end of which looked like a large sharp knife. His dark hair, fur, hid half of the two horns on top of head and fell down just above his cool blue eyes.

John had to stand in awe at then sight of Sherlock's creature form as Meliora worked to strap on the harness-like saddle that would help John and Janine not fall off mid flight.

When she was done she undressed around the corner and out of sight before also changing to full creature form.

Janine smiled at Meliora's form. She didn't see it often but it was easy enough to recognize.

The wolf was covered in black fur except for her chest, underbelly, some of the fur along her cheeks and the markings under her green eyes. Those were all dark grey.

When she looked back at Sherl she realized the dragon had dark grey markings under his eyes too and recalled how Meli had told her these marks were what told them whether an animal was a fellow creature or simple animal.

The black wolf nudged her life mate toward the dragon.

She automatically ran her fingers once through Meli's fur before looking up at Sherlock's back.

Sherlock moved his head to hint at the two humans to climb on.

To those who have never done so, it's difficult to climb onto a dragon's back even if said dragon is lying flat against the ground and waiting for you to do so. What is perhaps even more disconcerting is the realization that the straps you are using to ensure you don't fall off don't make the idea of riding a dragon any less frightening. However, at least there is cushioning for your bum and the scales aren't sharp like they appear to be but smooth.

Janine wraps her arms tightly around John's waist, thankful to have something to hold onto.

John is not so lucky as the only thing he can cling to is a rope-like handle attached to the harness.

Meliora barks five times.

Sherlock makes a show of nodding his head.

The wolf barks again but this time there's a pause before the next bark and the two humans realize it's a countdown.

One.

Two.

Three.

Janine clenches her eyes shut.

Four.

John grips the handle and takes a quick breath.

Five!

Sherlock and Meliora both sprint off down one of the hallways

John is thankful for the goggles the creatures insisted they wear. He watches as the transition from castle to cave comes and sees the light at the mouth of the cave.

Janine manages to gather up the courage to open her eyes just as the dragon exits the cave and takes flight. Her squeak goes unheard as she shuts her eyes again, squeezing John.

Sherlock senses her unease and glides through the air once he's high enough.

She calms down quicker this time and opens her eyes, only to gasp in awe at the view around and below them. Her grip on John slackens for which John is grateful. She can just barely make out Meliora's form below, no doubt running toward some pre-agreed destination.

John is exhilarated at this method of flying, knowing it must feel even better for Sherlock. No wonder he was always so restless! Being cooped up in one form and unable to fly. Was this how Sherlock felt while working on a case? Was it like flying for him? If it was, he couldn't blame him for being so anxious about finding a case.

Although unaware of his life mate's thoughts he would've agreed with his conclusions. The feeling he got from working on a case was indeed a lot like flying. Moriarty had been wrong. Falling and flying were completely different things and in his mind, no way alike. Falling never inspired anything positive for him. One might've argued that he had 'fallen' in love with John and that had been a good thing but he would argue otherwise. While, yes, he did care for John in that manner there had been no 'falling' in the equation. His realization of his feelings had felt as if they'd been literally slammed into him. First, upon thinking John had betrayed him when he had set up a meeting with Moriarty at the pool and again that same night when he realized Moriarty had strapped a bomb to John. Even though he'd known growing feelings for his life mate was inevitable he had still been surprised. His thoughts were interrupted by a lone howl, signalling that Meliora had reached her destination and was ready to change back to mid-form to set up camp. He changed course to head in her direction.

* * *

Meliora was swimming in the lake by the campsite when she saw Sherlock coming in to land. She waited until the dragon landed before getting out and shaking the water out of her fur coat.

Janine was a bit shaken up. Landing was a tad nerve-racking but John helped her off the dragon's back. It was a lot easier to slide off than it was to climb on.

The wolf came padding over and changed into her mid-form, not caring that without her fur she was naked.

John's eyes widened comically before he spun around to face the other way, his face red.

"Meli!" It was only then she realized that Sherl had been carrying bags tied to his creature form's ankle.

The green-eyed wolf opened one of the bags and pulled out a towel to dry herself off before quickly getting dressed. "You can look now," she told John, her tone declaring her amusement. She then began taking the harness off of the dragon, after which it was Sherlock's turn to change into his naked mid-form.

This time John couldn't bring himself to look away as he drank in the sight.

Sherlock's lips twitched in a slight smirk.

Jan briefly looked him over before giving him a look as if to say 'you aren't _that_ impressive.' Although she'd never seen him naked in mid-form she had seen him naked in human form plenty of times. She was surprised that her life mate didn't seem to mind.

"Put that thing away before you make your life mate faint," Meliora snickered.

John's blush intensified as he shot her a glare.

Sherlock shot her a brief amused smirk but did turn to pull out a towel and some clothes of his own. "So, shall we put up the tent then?" He asked nonchalantly.

"Sure," Meli agreed.

"Excuse me, tent? As in just one?" John questioned.

Everyone turned to look at him.

"Problem?" The consulting detective asked.

Was he the only one who thought this was weird? Then it suddenly hit him. "Is this another one of those creature things?"

"In a manner of speaking. It's a wolf pack mentality to promote welfare and companionship within a pack," he informed his life mate.

"Ah," John shifted under Meliora's intense gaze. And here he'd thought all the invites to bed had been to make him jealous. Apparently he was wrong. Again. God, he felt like an ass. "Ok then." At least the wolf seemed to be backing off when it came to yelling at him.

* * *

The pack spent the day enjoying the outdoors though perhaps not in the typical way others would.

It wasn't everyday Janine had a mini heart attack because her fiance was not only riding on Sherl's back without the safety of the harness but jumping off to dive into the lake...or jump onto the top of a tree...or just free fall until the dragon flew close enough or at an angle that Meli could grab him again.

John had chuckled as Sherlock put on a show, trying to show off how well he could fly and was surprised to see Sherlock in mid-form essentially taking a nap on a large rock by the lake. The consulting detective claimed to be going to his mind palace but he'd known the man long enough to know the difference between a thinking Sherlock and a sleeping one.

Come lunch time Meliora fetched them all some rabbits although Meli briefly started to rethink her idea of showing off her hunting skills when one particular rabbit was not only dodging her attempts to catch it but making her appear rather foolish. However, once she saw Janine smiling and laughing her embarrassment and irritation disappear despite her outward pouting.

Sherlock did not insist on John accompanying him to hunt down a caribou but he did give his life-mate the option to do so.

John smiled at him and said, "Sherlock, I watch you hunt all the time." Seeing the consulting detective slightly frown, he added, "You hunt down criminals all the time in human form. I imagine you find plucking off an animal from the ground dreadfully boring."

The dragon smiled back at him. They had bonded over Meliora's hunt anyway.

* * *

At the end of the day as they all (yes, even Sherlock) laid down in the tent to sleep John witnessed the wolf's soft side for the first time. It was odd to witness Meliora using, what he was now going to mentally dub, her Alpha voice to make Sherlock settle down. Really, the fact that the dragon listened at all was amazing. Of course he had wondered how often Sherlock actually listened to her. Alpha or no, the consulting detective hardly seemed the type to allow someone else to order him around. And yet... the closest thing to an argument he had seen Sherlock give was a pout and even that barely lasted a second or two. He watched as she seemed to rub her face in the crook of Janine's neck.

She giggled and the wolf gave her a slight smile in return.

He became curious as Meliora moved her face to Sherlock's neck and saw her sniff him.

When she pulled back wolf and dragon gave each other a small smile. Then she leaned her forehead against Sherlock's for a brief moment with their eyes closed before pulling away again.

John stiffened when she moved over to him.

Her expression revealed she was exasperated but nothing more as her green eyes looked directly into his.

He glanced over at Sherlock but the dragon didn't even look at him, his attention focused on his Alpha.

The wolf snapped out a harsh bark-like growl to bring the human's attention back to her. When his eyes met hers again she relaxed again.

John remained tense at her intense gaze.

Meliora reached out and put her hands on his shoulders before she pushed him on his back.

He automatically tried to get up but froze when she gave another snappish bark.

She held him down with one hand on his chest and used her other to tilt his head to expose his neck. Then she leaned in and sniffed.

He stayed completely still.

After a moment she pulled away. She met his gaze, briefly tugged on some of his hair and gave him a small amused grin before patting him on the head and turning away.

John stayed on the ground as the wolf went back over to Janine. Sherlock came into view leaning over him. "What just happened?"

The consulting detective blinked, "She just welcomed you into the pack by establishing herself as your Alpha."

"And the sniffing?"

"I was checking for any illnesses," Meliora replied from beside Janine. "You can tell a number of things from a person's scent," she explained to John. "As Alpha it's my job to make sure my pack is well."

And now he understood a little more how sleeping together with the pack promoted welfare and companionship. He also made a mental note to look up everything he could about wolves, dragons and expected pack behavior. All thoughts of this drifted away though as Sherlock cuddled into his side, making him smile.

Tonight the pack would sleep soundly but tomorrow would result in an underlying tension in all of them when a visitor came to the castle.

* * *

**This story may or may not end with the next chapter. It depends on whether or not I feel inspired to write it through to the real ending. If not, the next chapter will likely be where I leave things.**


	12. Chapter 12

**The Dragon's Companion**

Disclaimer:

I do not own BBC Sherlock.

Notes:

Basically there are people who are creatures. They can look human but can make certain animal features of theirs appear/disappear at will to blend in with ordinary humans. There's prejudice between humans and creatures so they generally hide what they are.

* * *

**Chapter 12**

As a dragon he didn't need much sleep unless he spent an in-ordinary amount of energy and while he was using more energy than normal by spending so much time in both mid-form and creature form he didn't need more than a couple hours of sleep each night. Even so, when he awoke he did not rise. No doubt Meliora would wake a few hours before their life-mates did and his Alpha would not be happy to find him gone. She was always so insistent that even if they didn't need the sleep it was their duty to the pack to watch over one another. Especially when their humans were asleep. His logical side wanted him to point out that neither John or Janine were in danger but in this instance his instincts agreed because he felt they were in danger even if he knew they weren't. So, he agreed to stay until the wolf woke up. Then she would keep an ear out for both humans until they woke up. Until she did though he had nothing else to do but ponder his relationship with John and his fear that one day his life-mate would leave him. If Mary hadn't turned out to be who she was he doubted John would have ever chosen him over her. And he couldn't blame him. John deserved better than someone like him. John would probably call him a drama queen again if he ever revealed that he would die if the man left him after they had properly mated. But it was not an exaggeration or a threat. Merely fact.

* * *

The sight of Mycroft standing in the entrance hall of the castle result in the discomfort of both Sherlock and Meliora.

"I'm sorry to have to cut this vacation short but Sherlock is needed."

Immediately the wolf's shackles rose and she snarled at the political dragon. "Why?"

Mycroft handed over a touch screen tablet. "It seems Sherlock isn't the only one who faked his own death."

All four of them tensed at the sight of the picture on the paused video.

Sherlock tapped it to play.

"Did you miss me? Did you miss me? Did you miss me? Did you miss me?"

He tapped it again to stop it, his features hardening.

"England needs you," Mycroft told him.

The wolf growled, "Well he's not doing it without us! And you better not fuck up again Mycroft! I'd rather we not have to clean up any of your mistakes this time!"

He didn't flinch but was aware his scent likely gave his inner reaction away.

"Sherlock?" John tried to get the consulting detective's attention.

"Does he know?" Was all Sherlock said as he glared at the video.

Mycroft shifted slightly. "We have no reason to suspect he does."

"But you don't know for sure." He would have to assume that Moriarty knew he was a dragon and thus knew the weaknesses that came with being one. He would not underestimate Moriarty.

"We're going to need to keep everyone safe." Meliora told Mycroft. "Mrs Hudson, Lestrade, Molly... They may not officially be part of my pack or your family but we cannot let them be put in danger. And your parents... Well, it's better safe than sorry."

He inclined his head in agreement. "Of course. I've been preparing a shelter for just such an occasion." At John's look, he added, "Really Doctor, with my brother gathering the interest of seemingly every dangerous criminal and political figure over the past few years I knew eventually he would be in need of some extra protection."

Sherlock shot him a glare. All Mycroft had to do to prevent this was make sure Moriarty had been dead! If he couldn't trust his brother with something as simple as determining whether a man was really dead or not then he had no use for him. He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked over to see Meliora watching him.

"We'll finish it this time Dray. He won't get away this time."

The dragon relaxed slightly, offering her a slight smirk. "Are you offering to personally make sure he'd dead this time?"

She gave him a stern look, "I'm not offering. I'm telling you."

Mycroft cleared his throat. "I'm sending a car down to pick you all up this afternoon. Be sure to be ready by then."

"I'm always ready," Sherlock told his brother in a dismissive tone.

Later that afternoon the four of them stood in front of the castle. They knew none of them would see it again before Moriarty was dealt with.

Meli put on a brave face though and grinned at her dragon pack-mate, "Well Sherlock, let's go catch ourselves a criminal."

He had a small smirk as he stepped past her to enter the limo, "Yes, I'm sure your sniper skills will come in handy in this venture of ours."

Janine and John looked confused as the wolf's mouth fell open though a moment later she burst out laughing.

"Well I suppose Mary had her uses," she replied with a wicked grin as their humans' eyes widened in realization.

Sherlock chuckled. "You just couldn't stop yourself from convincing Mycroft to allow you to sharpen your skill."

John and Janine slid in and shut the door.

"Hey!" Green eyes sparkled as she shot him a playful glare. "As Alpha it is my responsibility-"

"Oh don't act like it was such a burden for you to bear."

"...speaking of burdens..."

The two human passengers laughed as their life-mates continued to bicker all the way back to Baker street because it meant that yes, even though there was now a genius psychopath on the loose, they still had one another to help carry the burden.

* * *

Moriarty hummed as he flipped back to the first page of the file which held a full-page photo of a woman with black hair and green eyes. "The dragon's companion," he mused with a laugh. "You're my golden ticket." Closing it revealed a singular name printed on the front.

Meliora

**I have an idea for more. But I'm still brainstorming over certain details. I'll only start posting more if I finish. Otherwise I'll leave it ending here.**


End file.
